MONA COMPLETES THE BOOK END

On Saturday, May 7, MONA opened the next world – the MONA Library.

We have burrowed a further 36 metres into the earth and come out at The Round House.

The completely refurbished Round House (originally built for Claudio Alcorso’s parents in 1958) and its new extension currently house a collection of 4,500 books and 100 serial titles, along with further gallery space, and a research and reading area on the upstairs level.

The library collection reflects David Walsh’s art collection and personal interests, and focuses on ancient cultures (particularly Egyptian, Greek, Roman and pre-Colombian) and modern and contemporary art. There is also a fine collection of books on numismatics.

At ground level, three curved arcs, clad in zinc, radiate from the same centre as the house; a triangular glass tunnel takes visitors through to the Kiefer Pavilion, which houses the second Anselm Kiefer work in the collection, entitled:
Sternenfall/Shevirath ha Kelim (2007) [Falling Stars/The Breaking of the Glass].

Also, within the library gallery is the interactive frottage work by Masao Okabe and Chihiro Minato Hiroshima in Tasmania – The Archive of the Future (2011-)

The MONA complex is now complete. The Museum opened to the public on January 22, 2011 and to date has welcomed more than 163,000 visitors.

Access:
Walk through the underground tunnel from the westernmost gallery on level B3 of MONA.

Library services:
Reference services only. Reading areas are available. Library staff available to assist research.

Copying and Scanning:
The library has copying facilities (paid) and scanning to USB (free).

Opening Times
Daily 10.00am – 5.00pm
Contact: (03) 6277 9949

All about The Roy Grounds buildings at MONA:

The buildings:
There are two heritage-listed buildings on MONA, both by celebrated Australian architect Roy Grounds.
The Courtyard House (1957) and The Round House (1958) were commissioned as family homes by
previous owners, the Alcorso family. Both houses are now incorporated into MONA.
• The Courtyard House was inspired by Claudio Alcorso’s admiration of the Roman villa, with its
sheltered central patio. Grounds brought to the design his passion for ordered geometry, but also
fashioned an elegant warped roofline and made extensive use of glass. David Walsh converted the
house in 1997 to house his Museum of Antiquities. The building now serves as the entrance to
MONA, with access to the underground galleries spiralling down through the centre of the
original courtyard.
• The Round House was commissioned as a residence for Claudio Alcorso’s parents. The house
radiates out from a circular central chimney enwrapped by a spiral staircase, and is set over two
levels with the rear portion of the lower level backing into the earth. The building was constructed
partly using recycled convict-hewn sandstone. The interior has much timber detailing including
raked ceilings and hardwood panelling. The Round House and its new extension now house
MONA’s library. The extension will house a collection of up to 10,000 books, further gallery
space, and a research and reading area on the upper level.

The Alcorso story:
Claudio Alcorso immigrated to Australia from Italy in 1938. He set up a textiles factory, and in 1947,
acquired the peninsula of land, which he named Moorilla, and decided to build his permanent residence
here. “I needed an architect who would design the house I wanted and who would support my intention of
using local materials wherever possible,” wrote Alcorso in his memoirs. “Roy was an ebullient man, full of
vigour and enthusiasm.” Grounds was intrigued by the site and agreed to build the house. “The plan of the
house around a patio is simple,” wrote Alcorso, “…but Roy’s creative talent made a big contribution to all
aspects of the design.”

The architect:
Sir Roy Grounds (1905-1981) was a Melbourne architect who became famous for his formal, geometrically
simple designs. Grounds is known for major works such as:
• The reinforced concrete arc of the Shine Dome of The Australian Academy of Sciences in
Canberra (1959)
• The National Gallery of Victoria (1959-1968)
• Domestic projects like the Frankston Round House, Victoria (1953)
• The Moorilla Round House, the Courtyard House and Wrest Point Casino (1973) are Grounds’
three works in Tasmania.
Grounds’ progressive use of form and plane is considered to have had an important influence on the
evolution of modern architecture in Australia.

The contemporary architects:
Melbourne Architects Fender Katsalidis have worked to harness the Roy Grounds buildings appropriately
into MONA, whilst acknowledging their heritage architectural value.
The library extension comprises three curved ridges, clad in zinc, that radiate from the same centre as the
house, as well as the triangular glass tunnel linking the library and the Kiefer Pavilion. The extension
connects with the original house underground, allowing Roy Grounds’ architecture to retain its original
integrity and to stand discrete. In both houses, the architects have preserved the original room plans,
echoed Grounds’ geometry, and replicated original features such as interior timber cladding and
sandstone “crazy paving”.
“The new extension to the Round House is architecture that’s of its time, but it aligns closely with the
geometry of the existing house,” says Fender Katsalidis architect James Pearce.

Size: Library Gallery – 230 square metres; Library, lounges + reception – 200 square metres; Kiefer
Pavilion- 98 square metres.
Delia Nicholls, MONA